Wellard Riders Endure Tough Competition With Top Results at National Enduro Competition

August 1, 2013

Wellard is pleased to announce the great results achieved by two of its riders at the Australian Four Day Enduro (A4DE) event.

Wellard/CLAAS/Yamaha riders Shelley Connor and Dimity Duke competed alongside Australia’s fastest female off-road racers at the A4DE, which was held in the Harvey region of Western Australia.

The event returned to Western Australia for the first time in twelve years where the best riders from across the country gathered to compete for the top honour in their respective divisions.

Eighteen-year-old Shelley Connor was riding in just her third senior Enduro and her first National event. Contesting in the Women’s class Shelley showed maturity well beyond her years and experience to clinch fourth place outright in a highly competitive field.

“I came into this event a little apprehensive as I did not really know what to expect having never ridden a multi-day Enduro before. We did a lot of planning for it but I quickly learned you can never be fully prepared,” Shelley said.

“Of the three girls in front of me, two have international experience and all have raced National events for many years so I am excited about my results and I had a great time.”

Team mate Dimity Duke was competing at her fourth A4DE but faced an issue with fuel contamination resulting in her needing to regularly clean the carburettor on her YZ250F at check points and time controls.

Despite the technical issues facing Dimity, she managed to finish the event even after hitting a tree, resulting in the biggest crash in her professional riding career.

“I thought I had broken a couple of ribs and the pain was pretty bad but there was no way I was not going to finish. So I soldiered on knowing there was only the Motocross test to do on the last day,” Dimity said.

Team Manager Peter Strickland said Dimity and Shelley would use the lessons learned from the national titles to be an even stronger force in the future.

“Enduro is a tough sport, which requires a lot of training and concentration…and multi-day events, like the A4DE and the ISDE, are even more difficult for competitors and their support crews,” said Wellard Managing Director and CEO Mauro Balzarini.

“Off road riding in the Australian countryside is a fantastic way to get young girls and boys out into the natural environment while encouraging physical activity, so Wellard is very proud to contribute to this sport in Western Australia and internationally.”

Above: Shelley Connor inspects her bike before the competition begins at her first National event

Background – Wellard Rural and Trading

Wellard is a world leader in the production and distribution of livestock and grain.

Its two largest subsidiaries are Wellard Rural Exports, Australia’s largest livestock exporter and ship owner, and Wellard Agri, a large mixed farming land owner and operator specialising in the production of grains, legumes and livestock.

Wellard Rural Exports has supplied quality dairy and beef cattle and sheep and goats to the world for more than 30 years, its investment in the live export industry is without peer. Based in Fremantle, Western Australia, the company’s operations cover every aspect of the export chain, including feed milling, livestock aggregation, road transport, feedlot facilities throughout Australia and modern shipping.

The company’s flagship carrier, the MV Ocean Drover (formerly the MV Becrux), is a purpose-built livestock carrier capable of carrying 75,000 sheep or 18,000 cattle to major markets around the globe. She was commissioned in 2002.

Two new, technologically advanced, purpose-built vessels, the MV Ocean Swagman and the MV Ocean Outback, were launched in 2010. They offer unparalleled levels of safety for the livestock, crew and vessel, and can transport 7000 cattle, 25,000 sheep, or a combination of both.

Wellard Agri owns and operates eight farms covering 33,000 hectares across three agri-hubs. The two northern hubs are located at Dongara and Watheroo in Western Australia’s central midlands and one is located at Kojonup in the Great Southern region of WA.

The Dongara hub is home to The Grange, a 14,500 hectare property which is considered one of Western Australia’s blue chip farming properties.

The remaining landholding totals more than 18,000 hectares, of which 14,000 hectares is cropped to a variety of grains and legumes. The other 4000ha is devoted to sheep production, including the famous Hyfield Poll Merino stud at Kojonup. In addition, Wellard leases an additional 14,500ha for livestock and grain production.

Wellard Agri also has operations in the farm machinery sector, through management of the CLAAS Harvest Centres at Katanning and Esperance for the Landpower range of farm machinery.